The Shirelles

Martha & The Vandellas

Before the Supremes even had their first hit record ("Where Did Our Love Go" went to #1 in 1964), Phil Spector stunned the world with his incredible pop sensibility and famous "wall of sound." In the early sixties, Phil Spector created masterpieces for the Crystals ("He's a Rebel," "Uptown"), Bob B. Soxx & the Blue Jeans ("Zip-A-Dee Doo-Dah"), and Darlene Love ("Wait 'Till My Bobby Gets Home"), but it wasn't until he met Estelle Bennett, Nedra Talley, and Veronica Bennett at the Peppermint Lounge in Manhattan that his dream was fully realized. In 1963 Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry got busy working on the debut single for these three New York teenagers. They were signed to Philles Records as the Ronettes and began recording "Be My Baby." If there had to be one song to demonstrate just how beautiful and melodic a girl group record can be, "Be My Baby" would undoubtedly be it. It is the closest one has come to creating the perfect song. As Brian Wilson wrote in his autobiography:

"One afternoon we were driving around in my new aquamarine Grand Prix when the DJ spun a brand-new Phil Spector-produced platter, the Ronettes singing "Be My Baby." I had to pull over. 'Oh my God!' I exclaimed. 'This is great! It's the best song I've ever heard!' Marilyn didn't know what to make of me. I really lost my head during the chorus. Listening intently, I was amazed by what I heard. The melody line remained constant, but the three chords kept changing around it. I started slapping the steering wheel, it was so unbelievable. Why hadn't I ever thought of something like that?"

The Ronettes' "Be My Baby," the Crystals' "Then He Kissed Me," the Angels' "My Boyfriend's Back," and Lesley Gore's "It's My Party" all hit the Top 10 in 1963; it was the year of the girl groups. 1964 was a good one for the Supremes, who had four consecutive hits with "Baby Love," "Come See About Me," "Stop In The Name Of Love," and "Back In My Arms Again." 1964 also saw newcomers the Dixie Cups chart at #1 with "Chapel of Love." And in 1964/1965 New York tuff girls, the Shangri Las made their mark with teen dramas' "Leader Of The Pack" and "I Can Never Go Home Anymore."

By the end of 1965 it was all over. Of course a countless number of girl groups were still making records into the late sixties, but their audiences had gone elsewhere. Only Motown's Supremes, Marvelettes and Martha & the Vandellas managed to compete with the Beatles and their British invasion.

By the end of 1965, the lucrative careers of the Ronettes, Shangri Las, Dixie Cups and Angels had all come to a halt. Phil Spector retired while crucial girl group record labels like Red Bird (home to the Shangri Las, Jelly Beans, Butterflys and Dixie Cups) and Dimension Records (home to Little Eva and the Cookies) shut their doors. Fans were soon trading in their girl group 45s for new releases by the Beatles, the Byrds and the Doors - groups whose songs reflected the changing attitudes of the sixties generation. The end of the sixties brought drugs, the Vietnam War and the sexual revolution to the forefront of teenage lives. It just seemed a bit inappropriate to write fairy-tale love songs when scenes from Vietnam were being broadcast worldwide. The times were changing and the music would have to change with it. The introduction of synthesizers and disco music would soon wipe out the juvenile sound of the girl groups. Even many girl groups shed their frilly outfits in favor of mini skirts and flashy hairstyles. Mary Wilson and Diana Ross of the Supremes, Martha Reeves of the Vandellas and Darlene Love established solo careers well into the seventies and eighties. Though many of the original girls were still singing, the era of the girl groups had officially ended.